The Cost of These Dreams

The Cost of These Dreams

From one of America's most beloved sportswriters, a collection of true stories about the dream of greatness and its cost in the world of sports. There is only one Wright Thompson. His work includes some of the most read articles in the history of sports journalism. But to say his pieces are about sports barely scratches the surface. Wright Thompson shows us the humanity behind the legendary. Whether it be Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods or Ted Williams, he strips away the self-serving myths and fantasies to fully reveal his characters, and what drives them, in a way that few others can. This podcast adapts Wright’s catalog of articles, profiles, and dispatches into original audio pieces. It is an anthology of one of the most unique voices in sports. In it, you’ll hear Wright share his process and thoughts on his work, archival footage from the events unfolding in front of him, and original scoring. It features 8 episodes ranging from sports profiles to personal tales of loss and growth.

Episodes

November 14, 2022 31 mins

Walter Wright Thompson died before he could fulfill his dream of walking Augusta National during the Masters. His son took that walk for him. 

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The death of his father set a battle raging inside the world's greatest golfer. How he waged that war–through an obsession with the Navy SEALs–is the tale of how Tiger lost his way.

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October 31, 2022 34 mins

Ted Williams’s ambitions shaped his legacy but wrecked his relationships. It was only in the 11th hour of his life that the Williams family’s cycle of suffering had a slim chance of being broken.

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October 24, 2022 35 mins

What drove the former college basketball star to his death in the Brazilian Jungle?

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October 17, 2022 33 mins

Muhammad Ali Fought 50 men. Only one disappeared. 

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October 10, 2022 28 mins

As he turned 50, Michael Jordan wondered if there were any more asses to kick.

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October 3, 2022 44 mins

In 1962 the Ole Miss campus erupted in violence over integration and swelled with pride over a powerful football team. Wright Thompson explores how that tumultuous fall of 1962 still grips the state.

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October 3, 2022 27 mins

The hyper-focus of camera lenses made the 24 hours leading up to Game 7 seem like one big explosion of joy in Chicago, but the truth was that nobody could be sure how'd they'd feel when it all ended, whether they'd be full of joy, or grief, or both. 

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September 21, 2022 2 mins

From one of America's most beloved sportswriters, a collection of true stories about the dream of greatness and its cost in the world of sports.

There is only one Wright Thompson. His work includes the most read articles in the history of ESPN and has been anthologised in The Best American Sports Writing books ten times. But to say his pieces are about sports, while true as far as it goes, is like saying Larry McMurty's Lone...

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